KR20000029800A - Asphalt-containing organic fibers - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE: An organic combination suitable for fiberizing is provided by using asphaltic material lowering the viscosity of molten polymeric material to form. CONSTITUTION: Asphalt/polymer fibers include, by weight, 30% to 85% polymeric material and 15% to 70% asphaltic material, where the polymeric material has a melt flow index of no more than about 35grams/10minutes. The combination of polymeric material and asphaltic material has a melt flow index of from 80grams/10minutes to 800grams/10 minutes. The asphaltic material is preferably asphalt having a softening point of from 82°C. to 177°C. The polymeric material is preferably a polymer selected from polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyesters, ethylene copolymers, acrylates, methacrylates, and mixtures of these polymers. The organic fibers of asphalt/polymer may be intermingled with mineral reinforcing fibers and formed into products such as mats.

Description

Asphalt-containing organic fiber {ASPHALT-CONTAINING ORGANIC FIBERS}

Products such as insulation and structural products have been produced for some time from mineral fibers, in particular glass fibers. A well known rotating process for producing mineral fibers involves passing the molten mineral material by centrifugal force through a small orifice to form mineral fibers. The molten mineral material is fed to a rotating annular spinner. The radiator has a peripheral wall with a number of small orifices. The spinner is heated to keep the mineral material molten. As the spinner rotates, the centrifugal force moves the molten mineral material towards the surrounding wall. The molten mineral material receives centrifugal force from the spinning spinner, forcing it through orifices in the peripheral wall of the spinner to form mineral fibers. This process provides an efficient way to produce mineral fibers at high production rates.

Because of the desirable properties of organic fibers, many applications have been developed for polymeric fibers such as polymer fibers. For example, polymeric fibers can be used to produce highly flexible insulation products. Polymerized fibers are more resistant to breakage due to warpage than glass fibers in conventional insulation products. These polymeric fiber insulation products are easier to handle than glass fibers because they do not cause skin irritation. Polymeric fibers can be used in a wide range of applications, including absorbent materials, heat dissipation and sound insulation materials, filters, and stuffing / padding materials.

In order to take advantage of the high productivity and proven efficiency of the spinning process for producing mineral fibers, it is desirable to be able to produce organic fibers, including polymer fibers, in a similar manner. However, molten polymeric materials have different physical properties from molten mineral materials. Some molten polymeric materials have a decomposition temperature that limits the upper spinner temperature. Thus, these materials are too viscous at the temperatures at which they can be processed to produce fibers in a spinning process. For example, polypropylene with a melt flow index of less than 35 is not suitable for rotary fiberization processes. It may be possible to provide a polymeric material having a higher melt flow index. However, the cost of such materials will be very high. Thus, it would be desirable if a rotating process could be used to produce fibers from polymeric materials with low melt flow index.

The above object together with other objects can be achieved by the organic fiber according to the present invention. This fiber is made from a combination of components with 30 wt% to 85 wt% polymeric material and 15 wt% to 70 wt% asphalt material (unless otherwise indicated, the percentages here are all percentages by weight). Of course, the percentage amounts of these and other components in the combination are all 100% in total.

The polymeric material is selected from polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyesters, ethylene copolymers, acrylates, methacrylates, and mixtures thereof It is preferably a polymer. The polymeric material has a melt flow index of 35 g / 10 min or less, measured according to ASTM D 1238 Method B. For example, polypropylene having a melt flow index of less than 35 g / 10 min at a load of 230 ° C. and 2.16 kg is a preferred polymeric material.

Adding asphalt material to the polymeric material lowers the viscosity of the resulting composition to make it suitable for fibrosis. The asphalt-containing composition preferably has a melt flow index of 80 g / 10 min to 800 g / 10 min, measured at a load of 230 ° C. and 2.16 kg according to ASTM D 1238 Method B. Asphalt material preferably has a softening point of 82 ° C to 177 ° C.

The present invention relates generally to organic fibers. Specifically, the present invention relates to asphalt / polymer fibers. Asphalt materials lower the viscosity of the molten polymeric material to form organic combinations suitable for fiberization. The resulting fibers have industrial applicability, such as in heat and sound insulation, absorbent products such as oil absorbents (Sorbents), filters, and stuffing / padding materials.

1 is a schematic front cross-sectional view of an apparatus for obtaining asphalt-containing or asphalt-modified fibers by centrifugal force according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic front sectional view of the fiber mat of the present invention.

3 is a schematic front sectional view of a laminate comprising a mat of reinforcing material and a mat of asphalt-containing polymeric fiber.

4 is a schematic front sectional view of an apparatus for fiberizing asphalt-containing polymerized fibers and mineral fibers together by the method of the present invention.

5 is a schematic front view of an apparatus for sequentially mixing veils of asphalt-containing polymeric fibers and veils of mineral fibers.

In the drawings, FIG. 1 shows an apparatus for producing asphalt-containing polymeric fibers by a spinning process. The apparatus generally includes a rotatably mounted radiator 10 consisting of a radiator bottom wall 12 and a radiator peripheral wall 14. The spinner may be cast from a nickel / cobalt / chromium alloy commonly used in the production of mineral fibers, or may be any other suitable spinner, such as made of welded stainless steel. The spinneret peripheral wall has a large number of orifices 16 for fiberization by centrifugal force, preferably 500 to 25,000.

The molten asphalt-modified polymeric material is sent from the transmission tube 20 as a flow 21 into the spinning radiator 10. The molten material is preferably sent at a momentum sufficient to overcome any turbulence in the radiator cavity, more preferably at a momentum greater than 100 g · cm / sec. Momentum can be provided by means such as a narrow orifice (not shown) at the end of the transmission tube. As soon as it reaches the bottom of the spinner, the molten material pushes radially outward and rises up along the peripheral wall, where it is forced to pass through the office by centrifugal force and become a flow or primary fiber 22. After spinning from the spinner, the primary fiber is directed downward by an annular blower 24 to form a downwardly moving asphalt-containing polymeric fiber stream or veil 25. Any suitable means can be used to change the fiber from a generally radially spreading path to a focusing side.

In one embodiment of the present invention, only the centrifugal force by the rotation of the spinning machine to thin the fiber sufficiently to produce a fiber of the desired diameter, it is not necessary to further thin the fiber. The process by centrifugal force has a primary fiber having a coefficient of variation of less than 2 (variation coefficient = standard deviation / average) of 60 μm or less, preferably 5 μm to 35 μm, more preferably 5 μm to 20 μm in diameter. Provide enough acceleration to generate it.

In another embodiment of the invention, secondary refinement is used to make the primary fiber thinner. The blower is supplied with sufficient air pressure to pull and thin the primary fiber to the desired final fiber diameter. As shown in FIG. 1, the blower thins the primary fiber into a final fiber 26, which is focused onto a fibrous web 28 on any suitable focusing surface, such as a conveyor 30. do.

After the fiber forming step, the fibrous web is passed through a subsequent process step, such as oven 32, to a final product, such as mat 34. A mat 34 containing asphalt-modified polymerized fibers is shown in more detail in FIG. 3. The mat 34 is porous and has a porosity of 566 L / min to 1416 L / min for a 2.54 cm 2 sample with a 1.27 cm hydraulic pressure difference. The mat preferably has a porosity of 850 L / min to 1133 L / min. The mat has a density of 8 kg / m 3 to 160 kg / m 3 and more preferably has a density of 48 kg / m 3 to 80 kg / m 3. In addition, the mat has high flexibility and formability when compared to a film of asphalt-modified polymeric material having the same thickness.

As shown in FIG. 3, the lamination mat 70 may be formed by laminating a fiber mat 34 and a reinforcing layer such as a continuous mineral fiber mat 72. Laminated mats may be used for many other reinforcement applications as well as other applications. For example, laminated mats can be used as stress absorbing interlayers in various construction applications such as highway construction.

Optionally, heating means 35 is used to heat the spinner or primary fiber, or both, to promote fiber refinement. Supply of hot air is preferred as a heating means. By heating the primary fiber, the subsequent refinement process to the final fiber is improved. An auxiliary heat source can be used to maintain the temperature of the asphalt / polymer material at the optimal fiberization level by centrifugal force without the need for secondary refinement by the blower. Other heating means for the radiator may be used, such as electrical resistance heating. The temperature of the peripheral wall of the radiator is preferably 200 ° C to 300 ° C, more preferably 230 ° C to 290 ° C.

Polymeric materials used in the present invention may include organic polymers, thermoplastics, other thermoplastic organic materials, and suitable thermoset organic materials. As used herein, the term "polymeric material" refers to an organic component other than asphalt in the composition. It is preferable that a polymeric material is a polymer or resin. The polymeric material is more preferably a low cost general purpose polymer selected from polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyester, ethylene copolymers, ethylene / poropropylene copolymers, acrylates, methacrylates, and mixtures thereof. It is even more preferred that the polymer is polypropylene. Mixtures of other polymeric materials can also be used.

The viscosity of the unmodified molten polymeric material is too high to fiberize in a spinning process. The viscosity of the polymeric material is measured by the melt flow index. The lower the melt flow index, the higher the viscosity. The unmodified polymeric material preferably has a melt flow index of less than 35 g / 10 min as measured according to ASTM D 1238 Method B. The polymeric material is preferably polypropylene having a melt flow index of less than 35 g / 10 min at 230 ° C., 2.16 kg load. In some embodiments, the polymeric material has a melt flow index of less than 25 g / 10 min and a melt flow index of less than 15 g / 10 min. Polypropylene polymers having a melt flow index of 5 g / 10 min to 15 g / 10 min are particularly preferred materials.

Typical asphalt materials include bituminous materials such as natural asphalt or artificial asphalt prepared by refining petroleum. Asphalt includes straight-run fractional-derived asphalt, cracked asphalt, and asphalt derived from processes such as asphalt oxidation, propane deasphalting, distillation, and chemical modifying. do. Asphalt can be modified or unmodified. In a preferred embodiment, the asphalt is Roofing Flux asphalt, or paving grade asphalt. Other types of suitable asphalts include specialty asphalts such as waterproof asphalt, battery compound, and sealer. Mixtures of other types of asphalt may also be used.

Asphalt has a softening point of 82 ° C to 177 ° C. Asphalt preferably has a softening point of 93 ° C to 132 ° C. Softening points are generally measured by the ring-and-ball method according to ASTM D 36. Asphalt is preferably passed through an oxidation process such as air blowing in order to give a softening point in this range. Air blowing improves the high temperature performance of the asphalt and offers other advantages as well.

An amount of asphalt material is added to the polymeric material sufficient to modify the polymeric material by lowering the viscosity of the composition for fiberization. The composition comprises 30% to 85% polymeric material and 15% to 70% asphalt material (in weight percent). Preferably, the composition comprises 30% to 60% polymeric material and 40% to 70% asphalt material, more preferably 30% to 40% polymeric material and 60% to 70% asphalt material. Equipped. The combined material is preferably in the form of a blend. However, there may be some chemical reaction between the polymeric material and the asphalt material when they are combined.

The optimum amount of polymeric material in the composition depends on the melt flow index of the polymeric material as well as factors such as the composition of the polymeric material, the composition of the asphalt material and the chemical reaction between these materials. The higher the melt flow index of the polymeric material, the higher the final composition may contain more polymeric material, and the lower the melt flow index of the polymeric material, the smaller the polymeric material. For example, when the polymeric material has a melt flow index of less than 20 g / 10 min, the composition may comprise 30% to 60% polymeric material and 40% to 70% asphalt material by weight percentage. On the other hand, when the melt flow index of the polymerized material is 20g / 10min to 35g / 10min, the composition may include 50% to 85% of the polymerized material and 15% to 50% of the asphalt material by weight percentage.

The combination components are measured at a load of 2.16 kg at 230 ° C. in accordance with ASTM D 1238 Method B to form a composition having a melt flow index of 80 g / 10 min to 800 g / 10 min, of 100 g / 10 min to 200 g / 10 min. It is more preferable to have a melt flow index. It is desirable to increase the melt flow index by at least 45 g / 10 min by adding asphalt material to the polymeric material.

The addition of asphalt material not only allows the polymeric material to be easily fibrous, but also makes it possible to include filters, modifiers, and other materials that tend to increase the viscosity of the composition. These materials can be added as long as the resulting composition is suitable for fibrosis. For example, the composition may be a filter such as calcium carbonate, carbon black and mud; It may also include additional components such as antioxidants, interfacial modifiers, and modifiers such as plasticizers or other materials that increase fluidity.

The polymer and asphalt material may be combined by any suitable method for mixing the materials together. Generally, these two materials are mixed at high temperatures in an extruder, such as a twin screw extruder. The extruder preferably forms pellets in which these materials are blended. The pellets are melted and injected into a fiberizer in a suitable manner such as using a single screw extruder. The molten asphalt-modified polymeric material is fibrized by any process suitable for forming fibers, such as the spinning process or the textile process or the melt-blowing process as described above.

The fibers produced by the present invention are high quality fibers suitable for many applications. This fiber is not tacky at temperatures below 130 ° C .; The composition is not tacky at temperatures below 130 ° C. according to ASTM D 2131. The fibers preferably do not contain small amounts or more of non-fibrous materials, such as large non-fibrous particles having an asphalt / polymer composition. The fiber comprises non-fibrous material no more than 10% in weight percent based on optical and / or flow resistance measurements. The fibers have a relatively good strength. The fibers have an individual fiber tensile strength of at least 6.9 Mpa as measured by ASTM D 3822. Fibers made from polymers and asphalt according to the invention have a glossy black color.

The process for fiberizing the asphalt / polymer composition using a rotary spinner can be used in conjunction with a rotary mineral fiber forming process to combine or mix the asphalt-modified polymeric fibers with the mineral fibers. For example, as shown in FIG. 4, the spinner 10 for producing the asphalt / polymer fiber 22 is located below the conventional mineral spinner 40 for producing the mineral fiber 52. Mineral fibers are formed from any suitable mineral material, such as glass, rock wool, slag wool, and basalt. The spinner 10 is preferably mounted under the bottom wall of the mineral spinner 40 in order to coaxially rotate about the shaft with the mineral spinner. The molten asphalt / polymer material is sent out as a flow 21 through a transmission tube 20 in a cavity quill 44 which rotatably supports the mineral emitter 40. Micronization of the fibers can be facilitated in a manner generally known in the art of fiber manufacture by an annular blower 46 and an annular burner 36.

The molten mineral material flows into the mineral spinner 40 as a flow 50 into the mineral fibers 52 by centrifugal force and is directed down as a flow or veil of fibers and gases (as shown in FIG. 4). . As desired, additional means, such as binder nozzles 56 for adding any binder or other coating or particles, for cooling the fibers, or for supplying liquid, may be located outside or inside the bale.

In operation, the organic fibers 22 spread radially from the spinner 10 and mix with the mineral fibers 52 in the veil and are concentrated on the conveyor 30 as a mass 58 of organic and mineral fibers mixed. The mineral fiber formation process proceeds at a temperature higher than the softening point of the mineral, so the surroundings and just below the mineral emitter 40 are very hot. A portion of the organic fibers 22 may be entrained into the hot gas flowing with the fiber veil, thereby experiencing a temperature sufficient to soften or melt the organic fibers. In such cases, some of the organic material may adhere to some of the mineral fibers to form organic particles on the mineral fiber. The organic material may be present in the form of a coating on part of the mineral fiber. Care should be taken to avoid introducing organic material into areas that are hot enough to burn them. The agglomerates in which the organic and mineral fibers are mixed may be transferred to any suitable processing step, such as oven 32, before becoming organic / mineral fiber product 60.

As a variant to the coaxial fiberization shown in FIG. 4, a method of sequentially mixing veils of organic and mineral fibers as shown in FIG. 5 may be used. The organic fibers can be combined with mineral fibers obtained by centrifugal force from one or more rotating mineral spinners 40 to make the bales 54 of one or more mineral fibers flowing down, the mineral spinners being forehed (66) and By such suitable means of transport, the molten mineral material is supplied. The mineral fiber bales are located above the focusing surface 30, and the bales of mineral fibers are generally arranged along the longitudinal direction of the focusing surface. The organic fibers are formed by centrifugal force by one or more rotary spinning machines 10 to make one or more downwardly flowing veils 25 located above the focusing surface. The organic material may be supplied in molten form from a common source such as feed tube 68. The bales of the organic fibers are sequentially arranged in a line with the bales of the mineral fibers in the longitudinal direction of the focusing surface. As a result, the organic fibers and the mineral fibers are mixed with each other and focused as a combined organic and mineral fibers. Thereafter, the combined organic fibers and mineral fibers are continuously processed to the desired organic / mineral fiber product. In another variant, one spinner 10 for organic matter is located between two mineral spinners 40.

Organic / mineral fiber products are used in many different applications. For example, products are useful as stress absorbing interlayers in a variety of construction applications such as highways. The product is useful as a sound absorbing material, a heat insulating material or a sound insulating material, a reinforcing mat, and a gasket or sealant.

Organic / mineral fiber products may be subjected to a compression or compaction step to form a dense product. It is preferable that the product has a density of 32 kg / m 3 to 240 kg / m 3 before consolidation, and preferably has a density of 1040 kg / m 3 to 1920 kg / m 3 after consolidation. Consolidated products can be used in various products such as vibration damping materials, molding materials, insulation materials and floor tile substrates. The product is also useful as a relofted form that can be achieved by initial compaction in a compact state and placing it in a compressed space, such as a cavity of the vehicle body, and then thermally expanding to fill according to the shape of the cavity.

The organic fibers of the present invention can also be used to make products such as Shingles. For example, organic fibers may be used to make products similar to the asphalt products described in US Pat. No. 5,494,728, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

The organic fibers of the present invention can be made into useful products such as containers, preferably without mineral fibers. Consumable containers for storing asphalt and similar products, such as those disclosed in US patent application Ser. No. 08 / 657,831, filed May 31, 1996, may also be made from the present organic fibers, the disclosures of which are incorporated herein by reference. Insert it. Since the container is for consumption, it can be melted with the asphalt stored in the container without the need for excessive mixing without a significant change in the properties of the asphalt. Consumable containers for storing asphalt are useful for placing in Rufus Kettles as needed to supply more asphalt for roofing.

An embodiment of the present invention is illustrated by the following examples.

Example 1

Polypropylene and asphalt are pelletized in a twin screw extruder at a weight ratio of 40:60. Polypropylene is Profax 6301 (manufactured by Montel, Wilmington, Delaware) with a melt flow index of 12 g / 10 min, measured at a load of 230 ° C and 2.16 kg, according to ASTM D 1238 Method B. Asphalt is AC-20 pavement grade asphalt (manufactured by Amoco Oil, Naperville, Illinois) blowing air until it has a softening point of 121 ° C. The extruder is a 40 mm interconnect manufactured by Werner Pfleiderer (Ransey, New Jersey). -Rotary engagement twin screw extruder. The screw temperature is set at 177 ° C. The combined polypropylene and asphalt have a melt flow index of about 100, measured at a load of 230 ° C and 2.16 kg in accordance with ASTM D 1238 Method B. The blended pellets were melted at 260 ° C. in a single screw extruder (manufactured by Akron Extruder, Canal Fulton, Ohio) and injected into a rotary spinning machine. The spinner has a diameter of 38.1 cm and rotates at 2000 rpm (rpm). The radiator has 850 orifices each 0.86 mm in diameter in the peripheral wall. The temperature of the peripheral wall of the radiator is 260 ° C. The molten material passes through the orifice of the spinner by centrifugal force to form primary fibers. The primary fiber is further tapered by an annular blower resulting in a final fiber with a coefficient of variation of 0.7 and an average diameter of 15 μm.

The resulting fiber is black. Fibers are non-tacky at temperatures below 130 ° C. and contain non-fibrous materials no greater than 10% by weight. The fibers have an individual fiber tensile strength of 34.5 Mpa.

Example 2

Asphalt-modified polypropylene is fiberized with glass fibers using a device similar to that shown in FIG. 4. Polypropylene and asphalt are pelletized in a twin screw extruder at a weight ratio of 30:70. Polypropylene is Profax 6301 with a melt flow index of 12 g / 10 min. Asphalt is a roofing flux asphalt (made by Lagovan Oil, Venezuela), which blows air until it has a softening point of 121 ° C. The extruder is a 40 mm interlocking twin-screw extruder manufactured by Werner Pfleiderer and the screw temperature is set at 177 ° C. The combined polypropylene and asphalt have a melt flow index of about 100, measured at a load of 2.16 kg at 230 ° C in accordance with ASTM D 1238 Method B. The blended pellets are melted at 260 ° C. with a single screw extruder and injected into a rotary spinning machine through a delivery tube. The spinner has a diameter of 38.1 cm and rotates at 2000 rpm. The radiator has 850 orifices each 0.86 mm in diameter in the peripheral wall. The temperature of the peripheral wall of the radiator is 260 ° C. The molten material passes through the orifice of the spinner by centrifugal force to form primary organic fibers. The primary fiber is further tapered by an annular blower, resulting in a final fiber with a coefficient of variation of 1.0 and an average diameter of 10 μm.

The spinner for making organic fibers is located under conventional glass spinners. The molten glass flows down into the glass spinner as a flow and is formed into glass fibers by centrifugal force, which is directed down as a bale. Organic (asphalt / polypropylene) fibers spread radially outward from the spinner and mix with the glass fibers in the veil. The fibers are concentrated on a conveyor as a mixed mass of organic and glass fibers. The relative feed rates of glass and organic material are controlled such that the fiber product consists of 30% glass and 70% organic material by weight. The product is a gray / black wool material with a loft similar to fiberglass wool insulation. Wool products have a density of 40 kg / m 3. The wool can be molded into a board material having a density of 1470 kg / m 3 by heating.

Although the invention has been described with reference to the above embodiments, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the invention is not to be defined by the foregoing detailed description, but rather by the appended claims and their equivalents.

Claims (20)

made from a composition consisting of (a) a polymer material in a weight ratio of 30% to 85% having a melt flow index of 35 g / 10 min or less, and (b) an asphalt material in a weight ratio of 15% to 70%. A fibrous product comprising organic fibers having an average diameter. The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the composition has a melt flow index of 80 g / 10 min to 800 g / 10 min. The fiber product of claim 1, wherein the asphalt material comprises asphalt having a softening point of 82 ° C to 177 ° C. The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the asphalt material is roofing flux asphalt or paving-grade asphalt. The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the polymeric material is a polymer selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyester, ethylene copolymers, acrylates, methacrylates, and mixtures thereof. The method of claim 1 wherein the combination comprises a polymeric material having a weight percentage of 30% to 60% and an asphalt material having a weight percentage of 40% to 70%, wherein the melt flow index of the polymeric material is 20 g / A textile product, characterized in that less than 10 minutes. The method of claim 1 wherein the combination comprises a polymeric material having a weight percentage of 50% to 85% and an asphalt material having a weight percentage of 15% to 50%, wherein the melt flow index of the polymeric material is 20 g / Textile products, characterized in that from 10min to 35g / 10min The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the asphalt material is asphalt blown with air to have a softening point of 93 ° C. to 132 ° C. 3. The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the combination is non-tacky at temperatures below 130 ° C. 2. The fibrous product of claim 1, wherein the organic fibers contain nonfibrous materials having a weight percentage of 10% or less. The fiber product according to claim 1, wherein the organic fiber is an organic fiber having an individual fiber tensile strength of 6.9 Mpa or more. The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the average diameter is between 5 μm and 20 μm. The fiber product of claim 1, wherein the organic fiber is formed of a mat. 15. The fiber product of claim 13, wherein the mat has a porosity of 566 L / min to 1416 L / min, measured over an area of 2.54 cm 2 at a 1.27 cm hydraulic pressure difference. The method of claim 13 wherein the polymeric material is a polymer selected from the group consisting of polypropylene, polyethylene, polystyrene, polyester, ethylene copolymers, acrylates, methacrylates, and mixtures thereof, wherein the asphalt material is from 82 ° C. to A textile product, characterized in that the asphalt having a softening point of 177 ℃. 15. The fiber product of claim 13, further comprising a reinforcing fiber mat laminated to the organic fiber mat. 17. The fiber product of claim 16, wherein the reinforcing fiber is a mineral fiber. The fiber product of claim 1, further comprising mineral fibers mixed with the organic fibers. The fiber product of claim 1 wherein the polymeric material is polypropylene having a melt flow index of 5 g / 10 min to 15 g / 10 min and the asphalt material is roofing flux asphalt or paving grade asphalt. 20. The fiber product of claim 19, wherein the combination comprises polypropylene having a weight percentage of 30% to 40% and asphalt having a weight percentage of 60% to 70%.